By: Shelby Sauer, MSW Candidate & Shannon Hill, LMSW, CPS-M
Bullying. Defined as unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. It includes repeated behavior over time and can include actions such as threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally or excluding someone from a group on purpose. Did you know that 1 in 6 children are regularly bullied? Or that over half of all children will experience bullying at some point during their time in school? There are things that can be done; we must put an end to bullying.
October is National Bullying Prevention and Awareness month. This year’s theme is “The End of Bullying Begins with Me” in hopes of inspiring others to get involved in the campaign and educate themselves and others about how to prevent bullying. October 22nd is Unity Day, wear orange to show your support for safe schools and unite against bullying! Check out more strategies and tips to prevent bullying at: http://bullying.about.com/
References
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/39758956/ns/health-childrens_health/t/students-regularly-bullied-survey-shows/
http://www.pacer.org/bullying/nbpm/
http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/child-bullying.html
Regional Alliance for Healthy Schools (RAHS) 